One Last Thank You
by repomannumber1
Summary: After having helped the residents of Pleasant Valley to finally be at peace after righting the wrongs that were committed to them, Winter Storm returns one day to find it deserted and her adoptive family gone. The entire place empty aside for the mass graveyard for the residents of the town and a single letter by one of the headstones. Based on Field of Screams. Please R&R. Oneshot


_**I DO NOT OWN 2001 MANIACS NOR THE OC IN THE STORY!**_

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The night air was crisp and the stars were bright in the sky late that August night. It had been years of working and waiting, one hundred seventy five years waiting for that damn curse to be over and it had finally come. While many would be happy, that was not the case for Harper Alexander. He was glad that they would be free of it all by morning but he thought of Winter, the girl that had become like a daughter to him and had been her support where her own father had failed her. He wasn't going to be able to thank her for everything she had done to help them and he hated it. He knew he only had a few hours but he had to do something, anything, to show how much she had meant to him and how much she had changed his life.

He sat down and began writing on a piece of paper, scrawling down everything that came to mind. He read it over and over again to himself, thinking that this was no way to say goodbye but it was all he could do to thank her. He placed it in an envelope and sealed it with wax before walking, or more so dragging himself to his grave and placed it on the ground next to it; using a few small rocks to hold it down. He paused a moment as if in thought and gently picked up the letter again and gently kissed it and whispered, "Ah wish Ah could say these words t' yeh face instead a' this..." He exhaled as a single tear rolled down his face and he placed the letter back, weighing it down once again and heading back to town. Sure enough, by that next morning all of the residents of Pleasant Valley were gone and all that was left was the graveyard.

A few days had passed and the sun was shining, high and strong, as Winter Storm had decided to head back home to see the ones that she had considered a family for so long. She had no idea that the usual greeting of everyone when they seen her arrive would not be there this time to welcome her home once again. When she arrived back in Pleasant Valley it looked desolate and far quieter than she had ever known it. She looked around but no one seemed to be around. "Harper! Huck!" She called out for the first two names that came to her mind, and was worried upon hearing no reply. "Where the hell is everyone?" Still there came no reply or even sounds in the distance, there was just her and the slight sound of wind in the trees. She was shaken up at this point and had a rather bad feeling. "Dad, where are you at," she whispered, just wishing that this joke would end.

Almost at a moment's thought she remembered the curse of the town, the 2001 lives to avenge and she had an idea of what might have happened. A chill ran down her spine and she almost took off running for the graveyard and straight for Harper's grave. She hit her knees as she got there and already had few tears falling. She ran a shaking hand over the engraving on the tombstone and her hand trailed down to feel paper and a wax seal. She picked it up and seen her name written on the front in Harper's handwriting, though it was a little shakier than normal and opened it to find a letter inside.

_'Winter_  
_If you're reading this then that means we're gone. We reached 2001 Northerners within your absence and are standing on the edge of peace and rest for our souls. I wish I was able to say this to you another way so you could hear me but it can't happen so I hope you at least hear me as you read this. I cannot begin to thank you for all that you have done for us, all of us here in town. I am proud to say that I knew you and I am proud to consider you my daughter and be there for you when your own father wouldn't be. The entire town is thankful to you for all that you have helped us with and we could never imagine how different we'd have been without you._

_I consider myself honored to have known you and wish you all the best with what you do in your life because I know that you will be great and that you're future is bright. I'll miss you more than you know, but who knows what the future can hold maybe we'll see one another again in the future somehow. But I am always there with you, the wind in your hair, the rain when it falls and that shadow next you you; I am right there and will be for good_

_Until we meet again_

_Dad'_

Winter was in tears as she read the letter and would give anything for it not to be true. They were gone, all of them were gone and she was all alone. She leaned against Harper's grave and sobbed, wrapping her arms around herself. She just wanted Harper there to tell her it was okay and that she'd be fine. She didn't even get to say goodbye and it was killing her. She was scared and just wanted this to be a dream that she was going to wake up from and everything would be back the way it was.

She just sat there against the grave crying like a child and hardly noticed the new presence that had arrived at the grave until the other had spoke in a voice that was very familiar to her. "Now now, wha's wit' th' tears? There's nah need fer that." Her eyes went wide and she looked up to see Harper standing there that same half smile/half smirk that he always wore.

"H-Harper..." she meant to say it normally but it just came out as a whisper as she stood and threw her arms around him tightly. "Dad...Wh-What are you doing here?" She buried her head into his chest and exhaled as he held her as well.

He gently rubbed her back as she held him tightly and stroked her hair gently with his other hand. "Hey... easy, Ah'm righ' here. Ah'm here an' Ah'm not going anywhere Ah promise." He gently wiped away her tears and he smiled slightly. "Ah don' know how or why bu' Ah'm back." He looked at her and moved a few loose strands of hair behind her ear. "Jus' like Ah promised, Ah'm always gonna be there fer yeh."

She looked at him and smiled a little. "I'm just glad that you're back." The two stayed there for a time before heading off to contemplate what to do next. Whether the rest of the residents would follow at anytime and join them, neither of them knew the answer but they had each other and they were grateful enough for that./div


End file.
